The Patterns of Sequential Organization of a Person with Asperger Syndrome: A Conversation Analysis

Abstract

This study documents the patterns of conversational sequential organization, i.e., turn construction unit (TCU), of a person (pseudonym Samy, age 27) with Asperger’s Syndrome (AS). The language data was audio recorded from two naturally occurring conversations (30 and 40 minutes long two different encounters) between the participant and the first author of this paper. Later, the data was transcribed and analyzed by using the tools of conversation analysis (CA). The results revealed the occurrences of unusual prosody, unusual pauses, invalid turns and word-finding difficulties, in the participant’s TCUs. The findings of this research contribute to our knowledge on the interactional patterns of people with AS. It also draws attention to the efficacy of the CA method in investigating conversational structures of atypical people. The findings eventually prepare a dialogue for incorporating conversation analytical methods into clinical approaches to study the persons with AS.